Green Economy Journal Issue 63

SKILLS
Lead Sponsor
CHIETA
plans to GROW THE
HYDROGEN ECONOMY
South Africans will have opportunities for specialised training that
will equip them with skills for the changing world of work, the Fourth
Industrial Revolution and the rapidly growing hydrogen economy.
BY CHIETA
by offering specialised skills
Yershen Pillay, CEO, CHIETA.
11 April 2024 | Country Club Johannesburg, Auckland Park & Online
Resources 4 Africa is pleased to announce the 4th edition of its annual Hydrogen Economy Discussion,
which brings together all the key players, including government, mining companies, OEMs, investors, industry
associations, hydrogen project developers, equipment suppliers, infrastructure providers and independent
advisers, to debate the potential of the green hydrogen economy and its implications and opportunities for Africa.
This year discussions will focus on:
The Chemical Industries Training and Education Authority
(CHIETA) will be registering new qualifications on green
hydrogen and offering specialised skills programmes
relevant to growing the green hydrogen economy. This will
include short hydrogen safety, storage and project management
skills programmes. Existing qualifications will be augmented
with specialised modules for training more gas, electrochemical
and electrolysis engineers,” says Yershen Pillay, CEO, CHIETA.
“Africa can establish itself as a key supplier of green hydrogen
and its derivatives, with the specific export products directly
linked to geographical locations and existing industries (eg Sasol
in South Africa). For this to take place, as CHIETA, we are ready to
roll out the relevant skills required to ensure the country takes
its place in driving the skills critical for the success of the green
economy,” Pillay says.
South Africa can produce and export green energy, however,
there has been minimal movement until now on preparing
individuals with the tools to take part in the sector.
Citing the heavy demand for digital skills, Pillay said the
chemicals sector, as an example, would require experts in petroleum
and base chemicals proficient as information security analysts,
data analysts and scientists, digital transformation specialists,
big data specialists, lab analysers/technologists, sample takers,
plant operators and material handlers. Therefore, the traditional
roles of machine operator, quality assessor, quality inspector
and lab analyst could make way for new skills and competencies,
resulting in redundancies in mostly manual labour jobs.
Reskilling and preparing for jobs of the future via CHIETA is pivotal
to ensuring people take up opportunities brought on by change.
Regarding the glass sub-sector as another example, Pillay
forecasts new and emerging occupations, with roles for environmental
specialists, process specialists, and e-learning developers, leaving
inspection and package roles obsolete.
“CHIETA’s new initiatives on green hydrogen have positioned it
as an innovation leader in the sector, a reason behind the drive to
push skills development”, says Pillay, in furthering the transition
towards sustainable development in the chemical industry. This is
crucial for addressing environmental concerns and offers various
economic, social and competitive advantages.
To this end, CHIETA is implementing comprehensive strategies
integrating skill development, green technology and rural
development strategies to achieve sustainable growth. These
strategies encourage rural development, utilisation of the potential
of green hydrogen and implementation of blended learning
initiatives, which can result in positive changes that benefit
the industry.
“CHIETA continues to support technological advancements and
long-term growth in the chemicals sector through funding skill
development initiatives,” he adds.
Explaining the critical research findings from the CHIETA study,
Pillay reveals that there are mixed perceptions on the state
of readiness for South Africa to adopt green hydrogen. Three
significant concerns around the adoption of green hydrogen in
South Africa: the technology required, the skills needed and the
economic viability of hydrogen as an energy source.
Unpacking emerging job opportunities that could become
available in green hydrogen, he provided a list of roles, including
hydrogen fuel cell technicians, hydrogen power plant installation,
operation and management, policy analysts, pipefitters, hydrogen
sales and marketing consultants, hydrogen fuel transporters,
hydrogen vehicle electricians, power system electricians, storage
specialists and hydrogen systems safety analysts, among others.
There is a key demand for hydrogen worldwide, hence the need
to ensure that the skills pipeline is urgently strengthened.
As a trusted partner in skills development and training for
the chemical sector, CHIETA funds the industry for the various
occupational programmes as well as certain TVET sector and
higher education programmes. In this regard, CHIETA is guided
by its well-researched Sector Skills Plan that documents the
hard-to-fill skills and positions within the sector.
• The global outlook for green hydrogen supply and demand
• The reality of green hydrogen in South Africa and further afield
• Local, regional, continental and international collaboration initiatives
• Meeting the challenges of hydrogen production, distribution and storage
• Green hydrogen as a demand driver for PGMs
• Investment opportunities in green hydrogen
• And much more….
Lead Sponsor
Hydrogen Economy Discussion 2024 is proudly sponsored by:
Mining Industry Partner
Sponsor
Contact us about sponsorship opportunities: sponsorship@resources4africa.com
REGISTER NOW!
+27 (0) 11 463 7799 // +27 (0) 61 421 9492
registrations@resources4africa.com // www.hydrogenindaba.com
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The organisers retain the right to amend the programme, content, timings and speakers. © Resources For Africa Investment Conferences (PTY) Limited